Kaleka eyeing another strong showing in Russia

Frenchman Kaleka finished tied second at the same event last year as Northern Ireland's Michael Hoey won the trophy.

That showing was not Kaleka's only impressive performance at the Tseleevo Golf and Polo Club, where he took victory in the Russian Challenge Cup in 2012.

The 27-year-old is not among the favourites for the title, but believes that his past experience on the course gives him reason to be confident of a strong result.

"I have a lot of great memories from this place," Kaleka said.

"Last year I played very well and the year before that I won here. It was a big prize fund for a Challenge Tour event and the victory was very important for me to finish in the top 10 of the Challenge Tour Rankings.

"I know the course very well. It's a great course - very fair and quite long with small greens. It probably suits me because it's long and wide. I'm pretty long off the tee but not always the straightest hitter, so it fits my eye.

"This is a good opportunity to do well because it's a small field and there are a lot of amateurs and lesser known players competing.

"At the end of the day you still have to play well, but maybe if you shoot 10 under it would be a top three finish here, whereas in a stronger field it might only be top 20. That's the main difference."

With a largely unheralded field competing in Russia, a number of players will be looking to take advantage and boost their reputations.

Dane JB Hansen and the English pair of James Morrison and Matthew Nixon should be hopeful of performing well after top-five finishes in 2013.

European Tour event winners Scott Jamieson and Morten Orum Madsen are also sure to fancy their chances, while the presence of former tennis world number one Yevgeny Kafelnikov in the field is likely to attract much attention.